December 15, 2005

The BuzzFlash Mailbag

The opinions expressed in the Mailbag are not necessarily those of BuzzFlash. Read the BuzzFlash FAQ for info on submitting to the Mailbag.

THIS IS PART 2 OF THE DECEMBER 15, 2005 BUZZFLASH MAILBAG. CLICK HERE FOR PART 1

Subject: "Elections"/"Democracy" In Iraq

Well, well, well....here's hoping the Iraqis aren't permanently ticked at us at this point...all we did--gee, golly, whiz--was to tear the heck out of their country and kill a few of their citizens...

Shame that so many people (Iraqi citizens, detainees, resisters, U.S. servicemen/women, and the 9/11 victims) had to die so that the PNACers could get on with their 'transforming' the Middle East experiment.....

I have been trying to be positive, but personally, I don't think the ends ("elections"/"democracy") justify the means.

A BuzzFlash Reader

Subject: Not So Fast, Jones!

It is not all in the numbers!

WHY are the Bushies and the media making a big deal out of a large Sunni turnout? First, Sunni religious leaders gave the marching orders to vote. That is positive, but expected, as Iraqis will follow the dictates of their religious leaders. At best Sunnis represent only 20% of Iraqis, leaving the question just how much say will they have? If it isn’t enough, how will they react? The big dogs are the Shia and Kurds with agendas of their own. Too much is put on the contrived Bush rhetoric about the number turnout for the election. The election does not necessarily mean what Bush Promoters are saying it means! They have a proved history about NOT being right about their predictions! There statements about the insurgency waning have been false, evidence proves the insurgency has GAINED power!

The dominant Shia with the most influence will be the top winners. In that fold are the Iranian Dawa Party and the Supreme Council of the Islamic Revolution founded and controlled by Iran. This is NOT AN IMPROVEMENT! Their edicts are known to “inhibit” rights! Women under their religious influence lose more then they gain!

Of course the Kurds will go along for the time being. Their motive is their share of the oil revenues. It is known their true ambition is for an independent Kurdistan state and their eventual action will be towards that outcome. Turkey is carefully watching and already has plans if that should happen. Their vote is NOT a LONG RUN IMPROVEMENT!

A collection of leading Sunni parties called the Iraqi Consensus Front has been pushing a straightforward slogan: "Our goal is to get the invaders out and rebuild the country." If their minority status prevents the Sunnis from achieving their first goal according to their wishes, they may well return to violence to achieve their second goal. A leaflet was broadly distributed in the Azamiyah neighborhood of Baghdad last Monday. Sunni Arabs may have a chance to advance their cause politically in the upcoming elections, read the leaflet, but "the fighting will continue with the infidels and their followers."

... Don't get your hopes up come Friday. The worst possible outcome will involve horrific bloodshed and unrest. The best possible outcome will place two notoriously deadly terrorist organizations in charge of Iraq. Was this trip really necessary?

Meet the New Boss, by the always insightful William Rivers Pitt! (truthout.org)

The last two votes came and went. For a short time it drew kudos, and optimism, but then the reality took hold again, so not so fast, Jones, time will tell! Security, utilities still cause a problem. It is expected that Bush will get a boost, but a few weeks from now, what will have changed? That is the proof of the pudding ... Irregularities in the vote, and the assassinations or almost assassination of several candidates do not help the credibility of this election today!

What we DON’T talk about are the facts so easily forgotten in owning up to the part WE PLAYED in helping Saddam. What about the encouragement we gave him at the time {RUMSFELD MEETING} by providing him with weapons that allowed him to commit his dastardly deeds? THAT INFORMATION WILL PROBABLY BE WITHHELD OR DOWNPLAYED IN his trial!

While we all hope for the best and all support our troops, we can not let the “re-gifting” and “rerun of Bush rhetoric” make us close our eyes to the reality! We can not simply forget Bush and his henchmen lied, misrepresented their justification for an invasion, and avoided dissenting opinions about the war. Just because NOW Bush FINALLY gives out a few words of candor {while stubbornly not giving an inch on his stance}, does he deserve applause for what should have been done from the beginning? We can not dismiss the world opinion and the opinion of the majority of Americans that looks at the LEGALITY of this war of the “Bush policy-makers.” By the Bush Administration’s PROVEN unjust use and acceptance of torture and rendition, we have created more instability! As long as we stay we can be sure they will let us do their fighting and take the loss of our soldier’s lives that now sits at 2152 dead and rapidly rising!

More important is what comes next, who do we invade next, under Bush and his cohort’s directions? What will their next lame excuse be for carrying out what amounts to Bush’s “hero” image, his unrealistic fantasy, and his war for his legacy!

Susan Carr
Tucson, AZ

Subject: Bush's opinion always trumps facts

I forced myself to watch the interview that Brit Hume had with Bush and I’m glad I did because it was quite enlightening.

Aside from the usual signs of nervousness and pugnacity – the revolving jaw tick, and the knee jerking jitters of someone who seems to be trying to keep from urinating and the turtle-like jutting of his head forward to emphasize his malapropisms he also said two things that finally put the puzzle together in my mind.

Brit Hume asked him what he feared, and Bush answered that we might be perceived as weak. He emphasized (with the jutting head movement and the eyebrow rolling, smirky squint-eyed flash across his face) that we can’t be defeated militarily as if that is the reason why we are simply too strong to ‘cut and run’. This means that it doesn’t matter if we are wrong, if we are digging a hole too deep, or losing face otherwise. It doesn’t matter that the people are dying, or that the world disapproves. The only thing that matters is that the world never, ever, under any circumstances perceive us as weak. To Bush, NOT being the bully is a sign of weakness, so ergo, we must always continue to push others around because it’s what makes us strong.

The other thing, which made even a greater impression on me, is when he told Hume that knowing what he does now he would still invade Iraq to topple Saddam because he thinks it was the right thing. Brit carefully worded his next question and asked him if he had known that there were no WMDs and that the intelligence ‘was faulty’ would he still have gone to war? Bush said yes, that in his ‘opinion’ it was the right thing to do.

Bush has done this before. In his carefully choreographed speeches he speaks in absolutes, but when he’s nailed about his responses he always falls back on saying something like “In my opinion they are wrong,” or “I disagree with so-and-so” and leaves it at that. It’s a neat little trick of his to relegate all facts as ‘opinions.’ Maureen Dowd, Frank Rich, Krugman, Arianna Huffington, and Molly Ivins can bring up all the facts they want, because Bush has that little trick of dismissing it all as ‘opinions.’ By doing that, he can pretend to have equal weight in the discussions by pitting his opinion against all the rest. And naturally, being the Prez, his ‘opinion’ carries more gravitas, more weight, more importance and therefore trumps all those facts everyone keeps trotting out.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,178741,00.html

Pretty nifty, no?

Judith
Berkeley

Subject: That Boy Remains in the Bubble

Having read the scary Brit Hume interview with Bush I'm thinking that if Bush really wasn't in a bubble or maybe if he just had a lick of sense, he'd never be using that phrase in his repertoire "doing a heck of a job" again! Strange that one of his "close advisors" who keep him so well informed haven't told their prickly boss that maybe, just maaaybe he ought to drop that heck of a job business since those words have become the late night comics' buzz phrase. I had to re-read the transcript again to be sure my eyes hadn't deceived me when Bush refers to our military as "MY" military ... the man talks like he is a crown-wearing King, our ermine-cloaked Emperor ... this is the first time I've ever heard this from one of our presidents. I get a chill down my spine. This man is frightening!

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,178760,00.html

Peggy
California

Subject: "Milestone" Elections 

The US has made it plain that the only way the occupation of Iraq can end is by the participation of Iraqis in the "free" elections that we will orchestrate. That Iraqis should take part under these conditions is no more remarkable, no more of a "milestone," than their being forced to play Bingo would be if that's what the men with the guns had decreed. They may indeed "yearn to be free," but poll after poll suggests it's freedom from us that they desire.

Albert Clark
NY

Subject: Open letter to everyone ...

How far is too far? That's the question that needs to be answered by ...

The American people - Just how many lies must the Bush Administration tell, and how many atrocities must they commit before you will rise up in condemnation and cast them out of office (language altered for the "Religious" Right)? How much torture will you abide? How long will you watch your sons and daughters die in a foreign land, ordered there by a President who shirked his own duties in his youth?

The American media - how much suppression will you allow and propagate? How many reporters will you let be lambasted and jailed for telling the truth? Just how far from freedom and journalistic integrity will you stray in the name of corporate owners and sponsors? Just how far away from enlightenment and toward deception will you go?

The Democrats - Just how much destruction of America, and the philosophies upon which it was founded, will you stand by and watch? How far will you allow the Bush Administration to go in the name of not rocking the boat? Where will you draw the line? Just how long will you let fear of straying from the middle prevent you from doing what is right?

State and local government - how many have to die? How much will you betray the trust of, and your duty toward, the less fortunate and less well-to-do in your jurisdictions? How many levees have to break? How many blackouts need to happen? How long will you allow the Federal government to blame you for their mistakes?

The Religious Right - In the name of advancing the word of your God, just how many sins are you willing to commit? How immoral will you behave in order to legislate YOUR morality? How un-Christian will you be to turn America into a religious state? Just how far will you spread intolerance and religious persecution in the name of a forgiving God?

The Judiciary - How long will you cower and hide from false accusations like "legislating from the bench," and undeserved labels like "radical?" How deeply will you betray the law and the Constitution through fear or your personal bias? When will you finally stand up to the Administration's attack on the principle of Separation of Power in the government?

Republicans in general - How far will you let your Administration go?? What are you FIRST, a Republican or an American? To what depths will you sink to maintain your Party in power? How much of the Constitution and the People's rights will you trash? How many countries will you invade in the name of terrorism? How many more American soldiers will you allow to be slaughtered in the name of Bush's lies?

Yes, how far is too far? The answer to that question will determine the future of America and the survival or death of freedom and liberty in this country.

My opinion?? The Republicans and the corrupt Justices on the Supreme Court went WAY too far in 2000 when they overthrew the free election system in this country and appointed a loser to the Presidency. But "how far is too far" is a multi-level question. Too far for what? Crossing the line (as they did in 2000), or too far for recovery to be possible?

In 2000, they crossed the line, but by 2005 they are approaching a point of no return. If Bush and his Administration are allowed to continue unchecked, will we EVER be able to regain the level of liberty and freedom intended by the Founding Fathers??

For thousands in New Orleans, it is already too late. It's also too late for thousands of U.S. soldiers in Iraq.

David A. Desautel

North Bend, WA

Subject: The Iraqi Insurrection

Hey guys --

I'm tired of Bushco telling me how the Iraq War is like the American Revolution. I'm an American historian so you can imagine I might have a different take on this sort of thing.

Here's my post over at Corrente about it. I do hope you enjoy it!

The Iraqi Revolution / Insurrection (Corrente)

Sincerely,

Tom Spencer

Subject: On Being a FEMA Victim

Dear BuzzFlash,

I consider myself to be a reasonable person, and I think countless hours of attending grad school is a fair testament to the fact. I think more than a few of my close friends would assure you that they have never seen me yell or be angry at anyone. But there are times that test a person's patience, and today was the day when my closest friends watched me hurl a string of expletives at a stranger. Who was the gentelman who bore the brunt of my rant? It was a FEMA inspector. Now why one earth would I be enraged at the pesron who is supposed to inspect our ruined apartment, and who would have been directly responsible in issuing that check? A few simple reasons, I can't stand incompetence in general, and I have about zero tolerance to liars.

So let me elucidate. I applied for assistance from FEMA post Katrina. Being a law abiding, taxpaying resident of New Orleans, I think it is reasonable that I get some assistance from the government. After months of no response, I finally had this gentleman call me, and he asked me to set up an appointment with him so he may come inspect the property. I informed him that I had moved to a different state and was attending school, and it would not be possible for me to be there. I was a little puzzled because FEMA had called me and let me know that, since my apartment was in one of the worst-affected areas, I would not be requiring an inspection. But I figured, like any bureacracy, there are a few non value added steps that would take place before they got it right.

When I informed this gentleman that it would not be possible for me to be present, he suggested that I have someone from my family represent me. I told him quite clearly that it was not possible for my parents to drop what they were doing, and fly out to meet with him for a period of 15-20 minutes. At this point of time, he suggested I withdraw my application. Naturally, I was quite surprised at his remark, and told him that it was probably possible for me to sign a document that would give a friend the legal right to represent me. Apparently, this was baffling to the inspector who had to ask his supervisor if this was possible. And it turned out that it was. So he then faxed me the form, which I duly filled in and faxed back.

A few days back, I received a letter from FEMA saying that I would receive no compensation since I had VOLUNTARILY withdrawn my application. Obviously, I had done no such thing.

So I called FEMA, told them that there had been some sort of miscommunication, and re-instated my application. Then out of the blue, wonder boy calls my friend's cell phone (this is despite the fact that my cell is listed as the primary contact number, and my friend's is the secondary, AND he has spoken to me on my number several times), and leaves a message asking me to call him back. Thus informed, I called him today. His response essentially boiled down to him telling me to reiterate the process (initially feigning lack of knowledge about our previous conversation is my take on it). I asked him why he lied on my application, since I had not withdrawn my application. He claims he had never received the fax. He claims that he called me asking me why I had never sent him the fax. I have phone records that prove that the fax has been sent. I have email records in which I requested my friend to be my representative. I have at least 3 people who witnessed my telephone conversation with the fabled inspector. My phone records can probably prove that he did not call me when he claimed to.

I asked to speak to his supervisor, and he said that he had none. Last I heard, inspectors were not the head of FEMA. So I asked him if he was plain incompetent or just lazy. I asked him why he was lying. And at that point I lost it. Perhaps I was being unreasonable. But after being a witness to months of incompetence, laziness, lies, ineptitude, I think I was justified in venting my anger at the man directly responsible for the withdrawal of my application for assistance. You be the judge.

Regards

Akhil Bhardwaj
KS